The UK’s first electric vehicle battery research centre will be located in Coventry

The UK’s first electric vehicle battery research centre will be located in Coventry

By Sophie Chapman.Dec 01, 2017, 6:13AM

The UK government has announced that its first electric vehicle research centre is going to be developed in Coventry.

The £80mn (US$107mn) facility will be openly accessible to any UK-based business in the battery storage industry.

The successful bid was won by a consortium led by Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, partly made up of Coventry City Council and the Warwick Manufacturing Group of the town’s university.

The project – that seeks to make the UK a world-leader in EV technology – is part of a four-year long investment of £246mn ($333mn) dubbed the Faraday Challenge.

The National Battery Development Facility is designed to support early and mid-stage battery R&D activities developing into commercially viable businesses.

“The new facility, based in Coventry and Warwickshire, will propel the UK forward in this thriving area, bringing together the best minds from academia and industry together to deliver innovation and R&D that will further enhance the West Midlands international reputation as a cluster of automotive excellence,” reported Greg Clark, Business Secretary.

Mr Clark also announced that £40mn will be invested in a further 27 innovative projects from the Faraday Challenge.